The National Academies Press

Currently Skimming:

Pages 4-18

The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.

From page 4... ... The primary objective of this research effort is the development of a practical guide that public transportation providers can use to consider the merits of flexible public transportation services. Prior to this research, flexible public transportation services were believed to be operated by a relatively small percentage of public transit agencies. Read the entire page →
From page 5... ... For purposes of this study, the definition of flexible public transportation services includes the following: • Route Deviation -- vehicles operating on a regular schedule along a well-defined path, with or without marked bus stops, that deviate to serve demand-responsive requests within a zone around the path. The width or extent of the zone may be precisely established or flexible. Read the entire page →
From page 6... ... The initial survey also revealed that the implementation of flexible public transportation services is on the rise. As shown in Figure 1, a large number of respondents implemented flexible public transportation service after 1991, and the number of new service implementations has been higher still in the past 8 years. Read the entire page →
From page 7... ... • "Decided not to implement flexible transportation after pilot program in an area of town that had lost a fixed route several years earlier failed to generate sufficient ridership." • "Replaced flexible service with door-to-door service; ridership increased from two passengers per hour to three and one-half passengers per hour." • "Flexible transportation service scaled back due to fuel expenses." • "Low ridership, equipment and resources needed in other areas." • "Implemented flexible transportation services to salvage Saturday service on two local fixed routes. Discontinued service due to low ridership, communication problems, and confusion about how the service operated." • "Discontinued flexible service when ridership increased to justify fixed-route service." In summary, the initial outreach effort revealed the following about flexible public transportation service: • Nearly 40 percent of respondents indicated that they operate some form of flexible public transportation service. Read the entire page →
From page 8... ... were private, non-profit. The remaining agencies were primarily city or county departments, with a small number (4 percent) Read the entire page →
From page 9... ... all modes to ridership reported for flexible public transportation service alone. As shown, where ridership was low (less than 50,000 annual trips) Read the entire page →
From page 10... ... 10 A Guide for Planning and Operating Flexible Public Transportation Services Type of Flexible Public Transportation Service Route Deviation for General Public Route Deviation for Persons with Disabilities Point Deviation Demand-Responsive Connector Request Stops Flexible Route Segments Zone Routes % of Respondents 56.1 45.1 19.5 30.5 30.9 19.5 32.9 Table 3. Types of flexible transportation services operated. Read the entire page →
From page 11... ... • "At least 20 passengers a day" • "15% farebox ratio, minimum 4.0 passengers/revenue hour" • "3–5 passengers/hour" • "Cost per trip, mile, hour must meet contracted amount and standards for fixed routes" • "Miles per passenger" • "4.00 passengers/vehicle hour and 0.193 passengers/vehicle mile" • "Safe on-time standard" • "3 to 5 boarding per hour minimum" • "Not separately recorded, included with regular passenger count" As the list of productivity standards suggests, most respondents used passengers per hour as their standard, and most agencies reported standards ranging from 3 to 5 passengers per hour. Figure 10 shows the actual passengers per hour productivity measures for the respondents that provided measures. Read the entire page →
From page 12... ... • How is the flexible transportation service scheduled? • How are drivers assigned to flexible transportation service? Read the entire page →
From page 13... ... The types of drivers and the percentage of respondents using each type for flexible transportation services were the following: • Full time -- 88.3% • Part time -- 79.2% • Volunteer -- 9.1% • Union member -- 27.3% • Contract employee -- 22.1% The processes by which drivers were selected for flexible routes and the percentage of respondents using each selection process for flexible transportation services were the following: • Assigned to flexible service by agency -- 52.1% • Bid process, based on seniority -- 35.2% • Bid process, with special training requirement -- 9.9% • Driver volunteers for flexible assignments -- 9.9% Types of special training provided for drivers, if any, and the percentage of respondents providing different types of special training for drivers (or no special training) were the following: • No special training -- 19.7% • Map reading skills training -- 31.8% • Familiarization with area served -- 83.3% • Technology training (e.g., to use mobile data terminals) Read the entire page →
From page 14... ... Requesting Flexible Public Transportation Service Exactly 50 percent of respondents said that passengers using flexible public transportation service could be picked up without a called-in request or prior reservation at any established stop along a route. Nearly 40 percent said that the passenger must make prior arrangements. Read the entire page →
From page 15... ... or destination of the passenger. Finally, with respect to communication, a large majority of respondents, 89 percent, who operated both flexible public transportation service and fixed-route or demand-responsive transportation services reported that they coordinated the services. Read the entire page →
From page 16... ... Reasons to Operate Flexible Public Transportation Service When asked what motivated the agency to operate flexible public transportation service, over 70 percent stated that they were responding to community preferences and geography. Other responses are shown in Table 5. Read the entire page →
From page 17... ... realistic. Some respondents recommended making sure that agency staff, especially drivers, understand the service, are trained properly, and are willing to be patient and listen to passengers. Read the entire page →
From page 18... ... 18 A Guide for Planning and Operating Flexible Public Transportation Services Agency Name State Primary Type(s) of Flexible Public Transportation Service Area Served Population Densities (For Flexible Services) Read the entire page →

From page 4...

... The primary objective of this research effort is the development of a practical guide that public transportation providers can use to consider the merits of flexible public transportation services. Prior to this research, flexible public transportation services were believed to be operated by a relatively small percentage of public transit agencies.